mek42
Member
The following are two bills being considered by the NY State Assembly.
AW ban: http://www.assembly.state.ny.us/leg/?bn=A07331&sh=t
50 ban: http://www.assembly.state.ny.us/leg/?bn=A02772&sh=t
The first expands the definition of assault weapons and the second regulates 50 caliber weapons.
I'd like to use this thread as a way to organize points and then draft a letter to be sent to NY State legislators in opposition to these bills.
Assault Weapon Bill Points
The bill states, "Most citizens, including most gun owners, believe that assault weapons should not be available for civilian use." I question whether most gun owners really agree with this and intend to counter this point by discussing the various service rifle competitions. I also intend to address the various handgun bullseye target shooting events, since the bill defines any semi-auto pistol capable of accepting a magazine holding more than 10 rounds to be an assault weapon. Furthermore, to even own a pistol at all in NY a rigorous background check is already required - it doesn't seem to make sense to place further limits on citizens proven by the State of NY to be of "good moral character."
The Bill also states that legal owners of such assault weapons prior to 01 Jan, 2008 will have the opportunity to register their legally owned assault weapons with the State Police, entailing essentially an additional NICS check. I would counter this by mentioning how costly this will be but am unsure if this would be wise - the lawmakers might decide that confiscation / destruction are the only options.
Lastly, in general, I would like to discuss how banning specific weapons do not seem to have the intended effect of reducing violent crimes, even violent crimes using those types of weapons. I am not well read in this matter and could use some firm material to support this point. I would offer as an alternative to make stiffer penalties for the use of these type weapons in violent criminal acts if needed to appease the voters rather than banning such weapons outright - after all, criminals will just steal the weapons, perhaps from the police themselves as done recently in North Carolina.
It is getting late for me - I will attempt to address points to use to protest the 50 caliber bill later when I am more fresh.
Any suggestions for improving these points will be appreciated.
Thank you.
AW ban: http://www.assembly.state.ny.us/leg/?bn=A07331&sh=t
50 ban: http://www.assembly.state.ny.us/leg/?bn=A02772&sh=t
The first expands the definition of assault weapons and the second regulates 50 caliber weapons.
I'd like to use this thread as a way to organize points and then draft a letter to be sent to NY State legislators in opposition to these bills.
Assault Weapon Bill Points
The bill states, "Most citizens, including most gun owners, believe that assault weapons should not be available for civilian use." I question whether most gun owners really agree with this and intend to counter this point by discussing the various service rifle competitions. I also intend to address the various handgun bullseye target shooting events, since the bill defines any semi-auto pistol capable of accepting a magazine holding more than 10 rounds to be an assault weapon. Furthermore, to even own a pistol at all in NY a rigorous background check is already required - it doesn't seem to make sense to place further limits on citizens proven by the State of NY to be of "good moral character."
The Bill also states that legal owners of such assault weapons prior to 01 Jan, 2008 will have the opportunity to register their legally owned assault weapons with the State Police, entailing essentially an additional NICS check. I would counter this by mentioning how costly this will be but am unsure if this would be wise - the lawmakers might decide that confiscation / destruction are the only options.
Lastly, in general, I would like to discuss how banning specific weapons do not seem to have the intended effect of reducing violent crimes, even violent crimes using those types of weapons. I am not well read in this matter and could use some firm material to support this point. I would offer as an alternative to make stiffer penalties for the use of these type weapons in violent criminal acts if needed to appease the voters rather than banning such weapons outright - after all, criminals will just steal the weapons, perhaps from the police themselves as done recently in North Carolina.
It is getting late for me - I will attempt to address points to use to protest the 50 caliber bill later when I am more fresh.
Any suggestions for improving these points will be appreciated.
Thank you.